Looking for The Lactivist? She's retired. But you CAN still find Jen blogging. These days, she's runs A Flexible Life. Join her for life, recipes, projects and the occasional rant.

Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Ok, so as you know, I've been trying to figure out exactly what direction to take this blog as we move forward with me as a "retired" breastfeeding mother. I'll still be offering up my commentary and thoughts on the subject and I'll likely be inviting some guest posts on the topic as well. (I'll be roping my friend Anna in for a few since she's now expecting twins...a breastfeeding topic I can't speak to, lol.)

In the meantime, one of my regrets is that I simply can't keep you guys as up to date on breastfeeding news as I'd like. So, I have a solution. Or rather, Eurekster does.

Some of you may have noticed the new sidebar over there on the left. (I know at least a few of you have because folks have been using it.) That sidebar is called a swicki and it's a free community tool offered up by the good folks at Eurekster. I spoke on a panel with their CEO last month and have been playing around with the swicki option since then. I've got to say, it's kind of cool.

Basically, you can setup a topical category and seed it with some URLs to start things out. (You can also exclude URLs, which means I've already blocked any domain I could find that was associated with formula companies.) People run a search on a keyword and they get blog posts, videos and news stories that match. People then vote the story up or down, just like they would on a more general site like Digg. The difference is, this one is targeted toward breastfeeding news and related topics like childbirth, natural family living, etc...

Want to get in on the action? Start using the site to find and vote on stories.

Have a blog of your own? You can add the code for this to your site if you'd like to give your readers one click search access to the news and information in this community.

Over time, the categories, sites and such will refine as more people come in and run searches, cast votes and suggest new sites. Basically, this is a great way for the breastfeeding community to take the next step and build a great resource together. It will also give us a one-stop place to find all the latest news and information on the topics we're interested in.

Now, there's talk that as Eurekster grows, they'll do revenue share from the ads that appear on each swicki. This isn't happening yet, but hopefully it will soon. As the creator of the swicki, these funds would currently go to me. HOWEVER, since I want to push this as a community thing, you have my word that if this swicki grows and produces any revenue, I'll donate 100% of anything I earn from it to HMBANA milk banks.

I can't be everywhere at once, so the readers that only come here often end up missing out on some of the stories I don't have time to cover. This is my way to solve that and to help all you other bloggers solve it for your readers as well. It's also a great way for all of us to keep track of the hottest stories so we get a chance to discuss them.

Hi, just a lurker who appreciates your devil's-advocate take on many breastfeeding issues. Even though I don't always agree, I do like hearing what you have to say, since you state your opinion thoughtfully and intelligently. I just read a great book on the ecology of having a baby and the underreported reality of toxins in breastmilk, called "Having Faith". The author is pro-breastfeeding, as evidenced by the fact that she breastfeeds her daughter into toddlerhood, but she also has a potent warning message about the potential toxicity of human milk and how it's just one more reason to work towards a cleaner environment for all mothers and babies. I'd be curious to see your perspective on it, and perhaps other book and article reviews on the science/ecology/cultural signifigance of breastfeeding. It's one thing you could do with this blog now that you're a post-breastfeeding mother (unless another Laycock is in the plans? :-))

Hey there. I'm sure there are other Laycock's in the works, but not in this household. :)

So yes, you're right. I will want to start diving into some other topics. I've actually got five or six books sitting around here waiting for my kids to get old enough for me to have time to read. (Reading, I remember it involves books and turning pages and something like that...but it's been so long... Do they make books that are more than 40 pages and don't rhyme?)

Sounds like a good issue to look at. It's controversial, but that's never really caused me to shy away. ;)